The first part of Dead Space is deservedly in the leading positions in the horror genre with elements of survival. This is a proven game that scares not only screamers. This level of quality was expected from the remake of the project, but with important innovations, including modern graphics. told how well the Motive studio did in a recent review.

I’ll state the obvious now, but it’s been almost 15 years since Dead Space was released. In the past, I always thought that studios only released remakes of old classics that came out somewhere in the area where I was born. This was the case with Resident Evil 2, Diablo II, Half-Life, Final Fantasy VII, etc. And here Dead Space has already entered the category of old games that need updating.

And it seems that only recently there were senior classes and gatherings with a friend to play this cult horror. I remember, the game managed to frighten us considerably. We had to take breaks to drink mint tea and calm our still strong nerves.

Since then, Electronic Arts managed to close the studio Visceral Games, which created Dead Space, and kill the franchise, and the horrors of real war overshadowed all virtual ones. But the same EA looked at the success of Capcom’s Resident Evil remakes and decided to resurrect its iconic series. This task was assigned to the not particularly experienced Motive team, behind which only the controversial Star Wars: Squadrons is among its projects.

In the promotional materials, the developers demonstrated a serious approach to the creation of the Dead Space remake. But here’s what happened in practice, we’ll figure it out now. And now will tell whether it works at all to replace the real horrors of war with virtual ones, or whether it is better for Ukrainians to avoid the game for the time being.

Horrors born of love

Starting the story of Dead Space 2023 release with the changes introduced in the remake is like turning on the movie in the middle. The dialogues seem to be understandable, but you don’t catch the essence. So, first, let’s figure out why players love Visceral Games horror so much, and for what merits it received a cult status.

Dead Space was the brainchild of the immense love of development director Glen Scofield and the entire team. It may sound strange when it comes to such a cruel project, but it is true. Visceral was tired of riveting sports simulators and licensed games, so Scofield began to push the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bcreating a survival horror game to EA management. As a result, the studio received approval and a limited budget.

The authors immediately rushed to study science fiction, look for suitable sources of inspiration, invent scary images of enemies, and so on. In the process of making Dead Space, they looked at an insane amount of different material – from Carpenter’s films to articles on anatomy. And the result of this painstaking work was one of the best gaming horrors in history.

The plot in the project begins very standard. The USG Ishimura-class planet-ripper, which is mining for minerals on the distant planet Aegis VII, has sent a distress signal. A rescue mission was sent to help the crew, which included engineer Isaac Clarke. His beloved Nicole happened to be working on said ship and sent a strange message.

Almost immediately after arriving, the repair boat with the protagonist on board had an accident and got stuck on board the Ishimura. The team began to explore the compartments of the ship and encountered unknown monsters. From this moment on, Clark has three main goals: to find a way to leave the ship, to find Nicole, and to survive.

When passing, Isaac usually solves typical tasks. For example, start a centrifuge, supply electricity, clean the air, etc. However, the overall development of the plot in Dead Space is worthy of applause. The story accelerates relatively slowly. But it is constantly interwoven with religious motives, information about the events leading up to the Ishimura disaster, mysticism, betrayals and unexpected discoveries.

The story impresses with the depth of its mythology and knows how to surprise. And it’s constantly evolving, even though Clark always acts alone. The other members of the rescue mission contact him, give instructions and discuss the solution to the problems that accumulate due to the emergency state of the Ishimura. And the ship is not as deserted as it might seem.

The plot pushes forward and motivates you to read every note, listen to all voice diaries and eagerly absorb information. After all, it is simply interesting to decipher what actually happened on the Ishimura. Having that kind of incentive is especially important when it comes to monstrosity where it’s physically difficult to move forward.

Trembling to the heel

Horror games influence me a lot. I can watch any horror movie and never cringe. But as soon as I run any of the gradation projects from Amnesia to Resident Evil 7, I start jumping at any noise after ten minutes. However, Dead Space is a special case in this regard.

The cold metal compartments of “Ishimura” do not let you forget about the feeling of constant loneliness. Yes, there are other members of the rescue mission out there somewhere, but with all the dangers around the corner, the player will have to fight on his own. Narrow combinations of corridors with traces of a recent disaster cause a feeling of claustrophobia. And regular screams, muffled blows, grinding and sounds of movement behind the walls cause considerable anxiety.

This entire complex is complemented by necromorphs. Oh, necromorphs… In the remake, these creatures inhabiting “Ishimura” made me jump on my chair more than a dozen times. The monsters on the ship appeared as a result of the mutation of the crew. They still have human features to remind the player of their former life. But don’t be fooled: more dangerous and frightening enemies still need to be found.

Necromorphs quickly make it clear that they know how to crawl through ventilation. They jump into the holes several times right in front of the player. After that, take it easy. Entrances to the ventilation tunnels are in every compartment and room of the ship. But it is impossible to understand which one the opponents will jump out of. Monsters do not hesitate to climb out behind or go around from behind, if the battle is relatively spacious arena. And thanks to this, an incredible degree of tension is created.

Necrophors appear unpredictably, and the unknown is always the main trigger of fear for every person. I repeatedly felt like the same horror guy who burns anything when enemies appear. Because of this, more than one clip went “in the milk”, because the method of destroying monsters in Dead Space is also unique. Players must shoot limbs to destroy the enemy. But the brain, out of habit, reminds us to aim for the head, which causes quite a bit of dissonance at first. You need to directly force yourself to rebuild.

There are various individuals among necrophores. Some of them spit acid, others quickly run to the main character, others jump from a long distance, and others release a swarm of small scoundrels who cling to Isaac and take away a lot of health. It is necessary to adapt to each type of opponents, taking into account various factors. This includes the limited viewing angle, and the slowness of the main character, and the design of the environment, for example, a narrow space. Yes, Dead Space does everything to make the battles as uncomfortable as possible. However, the game also provides a lot of means of combat.

An engineer with a decent arsenal

Gradually, during the passage of the horror, users find various weapons. Of the entire arsenal, only a pulse rifle, as an analogue of a conventional machine gun, and a flamethrower can be called more or less standard. But the other thing is guns, according to Isaac’s engineering profession. These include a pipe cutter, power gun, plasma and power cutters.

Each weapon has two firing modes and certain features. For example, a flamethrower can cause gradual damage or launch fuel cylinders for an explosion. This is an important aspect that should always be remembered in battle. If the battle is at a long distance, it is better to take a pulse rifle. A pipe cutter saves when surrounded by necromorphs, and a power gun is indispensable in tight spaces. In battles, you can also use the stasis and kinetic modules of the suit. The first slows down enemies, and the second allows you to throw objects. They are used to solve spatial tasks on missions.

All the weapons and the costume of the protagonist can be improved on machines. For this, it is necessary to look for upgrades and nodes in locations. Pumping allows you to feel more confident in battles, breathe longer when you need to pass through compartments without air, use stasis more often and have a lot of health.

You will have to feel the environment in Dead Space in any case. Necromorphs are incredibly durable, and their clips are consumed by each other. So you can’t do without searching all kinds of lockers. At this point, it becomes clear how much the game’s design has been checked. Ishimura feels like one complete “organism”. Isaac will need to move between its parts on a trolley many times and run through already familiar compartments. However, you will be able to purchase new supplies each time.

Dead Space borrowed a system from Metroidvania, when in old locations it is possible to visit previously blocked places thanks to acquired skills. The protagonist has no skills, but he gets higher levels of access. Thanks to this, you can gradually open all the lockers and rooms that you run past. This world design reinforces the belief that everything is happening on one big ship that has turned into a death trap.

Small misses

Yes, Dead Space is an exemplary survival horror. But even it has several flaws. The problems are far from critical, but after such sweet praises, you need to sober up a little. The pace of the game is uneven in places – sometimes it overdoes it with screamers and battles, although a break is already coming.

There is usually no need to put things in order in the inventory. It is enough to accumulate credits and buy improvements for the costume in time in the store. Then you will be able to collect all the found objects. The question of what to take with you and what things to leave in storage, as in many Resident Evil games, is irrelevant in Dead Space. And for horror movies with survival elements, this is an important element.

The design of the locations is largely monotonous. In the game, you almost never want to stop and start looking around. And the lighting is too bright, as for horror.

About everything in the remake

Wow, a lot has already been said, but it’s all important, because most of the mentioned aspects remain intact in the remake. And to understand the innovations, you need to know how it was in the original. The main and most obvious change in the new Dead Space was the graphics. And here, in general, everything is excellent – excellent detailing, realistic shadows and dynamic lighting made the project a modern high-budget horror. Former problems with color gamut and brightness are a thing of the past.

All textures were redrawn, making the environment even more brutal and creepy. Effects and parts are also performed at a decent level. And the dismemberment system can claim the title of one of the most accurate in games. There are no complaints about animations either: facial expressions and weapon reloading turned out to be realistic and smooth. So, the only point of contention is Nicole’s appearance, which has been aged for some reason.

Let’s mention the bugs right here, when we started with the technical aspects. There were no critical problems during the passage, but often when opening the inventory, the keys worked in standard mode. Because of this, you can accidentally use the first aid kit that you planned to keep in reserve. Sometimes the indicator of the route to the goal failed, but this happened extremely rarely.

The sound in the remake is simply at its best. The soundtrack can seem like a terrible cacophony. But if you listen, it will become clear that it performs its main function – to increase the anxiety and internal discomfort of the player. Squeals on strings, a loud introduction of larynxes, a quiet annoying xylophone, the likeness of sirens and many other sounds flash in the compositions. And they intertwine through sharp transitions and a sudden change in tonality.

You don’t want to add this to your playlist, but in the game the soundtrack conducts the whole atmosphere. The only caveat here is the martial theme tune that enters the peaceful moments. She constantly confuses and makes enemies appear. Such a technique looks too cheap for Dead Space, because the game already knows how to delicately keep tension.

“Ishimura” has grown wider in the remake. Individual rooms became larger and acquired details. The simplest example here is the hangar where the rescue team arrives. Already in the third section, you can freely fly on it in the mode of zero gravity and evaluate the changes. In some parts of the ship, there are additional rooms for research and searching for resources, which is generally not bad.

The developers were able to modernize the design and not destroy the feeling of the roominess of Dead Space. Even in relatively large hangars, compartments with a centrifuge and an asteroid, the feeling of a dangerous confined space does not disappear. And here I would like to end on a high note, but there is also the plot and gameplay. These aspects were also changed, but there were questions about certain decisions of Motive.

They tried to expand the story due to small additional tasks and the presence of new characters. The latter were well implemented in the story. And Clark finally learned to speak. It makes dialogue feel like… dialogue! The main character responds to the lines of associates, expresses emotions, discusses the current situation, etc. Isaac feels alive, and the narrative development feels more natural.

However, these pluses of the story update are overshadowed by the fat minus of the changed design of individual missions. It is not clear why, but Motive decided to supplement the plot in the sixth and tenth chapters. And as a result, the innovations feel like artificial and unnecessary stretching of the timeline. Although the story in the original Dead Space sagged in places, it felt surprisingly coherent. During the passage, it never occurred to me that Isaac was engaged in some nonsense. No, all the obstacles, challenges and trials on his way seemed organic and well-founded.

But the innovations in setting missions in the remake refer to quests from MMORPGs, a la “bring ten boar skins”. In the sixth and tenth chapters, the game brazenly pulled me out of the story and made me doubt the veracity of the whole adventure. For a single-player game, this is a critical flaw that was not present in the original. Motive managed to break what worked well for longer playthroughs. And they substantiated the need to wind the circles with separate compartments of the “Ishimura” very conditionally.

When I realized this, it became scary for the future of Dead Space again, as it was after the third part. If Motive is entrusted with the development of the franchise, then the studio may not be able to cope with the creation of an organic story. However, so far these are only suspicions, albeit well-founded. The developers spoiled the pace and integrity of the story, but did not “kill” it completely. The plot is still a lot of fun, and the good changes should not be forgotten.

It is easier to think about the gameplay in the remake. It remained the same, except for point changes. For example, the fragment with the destruction of asteroids was made more complex and even realistic. Weapons began to feel a little better, and tactile vibration and adaptive DualSense triggers only increase the pleasant feelings of shooting. The shooting modes of guns have changed in some places, for example, rifles have an underbarrel grenade launcher. The kinetic module became more useful due to the mountains of garbage around, and the necromorphs began to act more aggressively in battles.

But I didn’t quite manage to evaluate the second director. The developers claimed that the Dead Space remake assesses the player’s level of fear. Depending on it, the off-screen “conductor” determines the frequency, number and suddenness of the appearance of monsters. I didn’t notice anything of the sort, with hordes of necromorphs at many points, and most of the unexpected encounters with enemies seemed scripted.

And this is said by a person who was really afraid and was scared many times. I frequently checked the cartridges in the clips and took breaks in the safe rooms. However, it doesn’t look like my creepy gameplay is being read by the AI ​​director. Maybe he’s just driven by the number of deaths. And since I was dying a little on medium difficulty, he “vacuum-cleaned” me with monsters.

And you can’t forget about the ending. The final stretch in the remake is different, and this is where Motive should be commended for bold changes and good location design. In general, the ending in the updated Dead Space better sums up the whole adventure. And in the “New Game+” mode, there is an alternative ending that perfectly connects the events of the first part with the sequel.

However, even here there were not-so-famous “buts”. The number of enemies at the end was clearly exaggerated, and so much so that a third is involuntarily mentioned. Necromorphs should scare, not turn into “meat” from a third-rate shooter. And the developers left too many clear hints about the upcoming plot twist.

Better horror on the screen

So how did the remake of Dead Space turn out? If we talk about the final impressions, then excellent — good, unforgettable and very scary. The basic concept of the original hasn’t aged at all, and Motive has done a great job of modernizing it and adding a little of its own. Not all innovations turned out to be appropriate, and the creators will clearly need to work on mistakes. However, the remake of Dead Space deserves the title of the first quality AAA game in 2023.

For Ukrainians, the idea of ​​going through horror may seem crazy during a full-scale war, and not everyone has such an opportunity. But you know, if you want to distract yourself, this is a good way. It’s a bit masochistic, but generally works. Dead Space forces you to focus all your attention on the virtual world of “Ishimura” and, at least for a short time, takes you into reality, where fears take place in the distant dead space.

rating: 8 out of 10

Nazar Steporuk